Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Noah Updates

Update 28th December 2009: Noahs feeding tube has been removed and he is now eating all by himself!

Update 20th December 2009: Noahs jaw fixture was finally removed! He is now starting to eat small bits of food and will be able to have his feeding tube removed soon.

Update 6th November 2009: Noah has recovered from the surgery and is now walking around, playing, exploring. However another complication has come up and it has been discovered that he has zero tear production. This could be cause by head trauma and a result of nerve damage, it may or may not be permanent. For now he needs eye lubrication at least 3 times a day. The eye ointment is expensive, and adding up when he needs it so often.

Update 2nd November 2009: Noah is now slowly starting to walk. He has been unable to until this point, it is still not sure if this is due to the head injuries or not. He continues to be fed through the feeding tube, and will not be able to eat on his own until the fixture is removed. The re-evaluation is in one month, at that point they will determine if they will have to go back into surgery or not. However they believe they will most likely have to. Therefore Noah will need constant feedings throughout the day for at least one month, if not two. For now his incision is healing well and everything is going smoothly.

Update 30th October 2009:Noah went into his first surgery with Doctor Warrak, and Interns Dr. Grenier and Dre. Bond. As explain by Dr. Warrak, “A cerclage was put to immobilize the fracture at the intermandibular symphysis. An external fixator was put to reduce the mid-mandibular fracture. It was impossible to put a cerclage because there were some mandibular fragments, and all the plates were too big for the mandible. There was a lot of fibrous tissues, indicating that the fracture was old, at least two weeks. Due to his very small size at 5 pounds, it was tricky. They had to adjust their instruments, pins and wires accordingly. The surgeons were amazed by the extent of the injuries, which means a lot when these are specialist and see this every day. The surgery nonetheless went well and Noah recovered in the ICU that night.

Update 29th October 2009:The CT scan revealed extensive jaw injuries, more than expected; Oblique mid-mandibular fracture to the right, with a fracture at inter-mandibular symphysis. Polytrauma to the head, with multiple fractures at the temporo-mandibular articulation, skull, zygomatic arch, frontal sinus, ethmoid, and nasal septum.The surgeon Dr. Warrak, explained that it was caused by “severe head trauma” comparable to being hit by a car. However Noah was stickly kept indoors in an appartment with no acess to escape. Noah will need at least two surgeries each costing 1200$. This does not include the pre-operative and post-operative intensive care needed.

Update 28th October 2009: Noah has been transferred to St. Hyacinthe to have a CT scan and be evaluated by the surgeon.

Update 27th October 2009: A feeding tube was put into place. This tube is directly attached to his stomach as he cannot use his mouth due to the damage. Despite difficulty incubating because of the injuries and swelling the surgery went very well as he has now recovered from it.

1 comment:

Would it be possible to see an updated photo of Noah the kitten and how he has progressed without the feeding tube. Its wonderful to know that he still has a good life ahead of him and many thanks go out to all of those that help these animals in need.